Wildfires Blaze in Western U.S and British Columbia, Canada

More
than 200 large wildfires fueled by dry grass have forced thousands of
residents to flee in the U.S. and Canada.

On
Tuesday, many of the nearly 8,000 people told to evacuate in
California over the past several days were allowed to return to their
homes, particularly in northern California. Many others remained
evacuated, according to the Associated Press.

In
Southern California, at least 3,500 people were evacuated as
firefighters battled two fires at opposite ends of Santa Barbara
County. One of them, the so-called Alamo fire, has burned more than
43 square miles, is 45 percent contained and threatens homes near a
town in neighboring San Luis Obispo County.

The
situation remains dangerous as heat returns to the West after a brief
respite early this week, notes weather.com meteorologist Chris Dolce.

"Temperatures
have trended back closer to seasonal averages in the West this week,"
said Dolce. "But a ridge of high pressure will once again build
across the region, causing hot temperatures to return to parts of the
Northwest, Great Basin and Rockies late this week into the weekend.
The Southwest should see temperatures stay mostly close to seasonal
averages due to increased monsoonal moisture"

Further
north, some 4,000 residents were told to evacuate their homes in the
Sierra Nevada foothills north of Sacramento as fire swept through the
grasslands, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
told AP.

The
so-called Wall fire has burned more than 9 square miles and is 45
percent contained, reports the Sacramento Bee. Four firefighters were
injured in the blaze that has destroyed at least three dozen homes as
of Tuesday, the AP reports.

The
area burning was just southeast of Oroville, where a broken spillway
at the nation's tallest dam earlier this year prompted the temporary
evacuation of 200,000 residents downstream.

The
cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The
fires are two of 15 large wildfires burning across California.

Elsewhere
in the West

Authorities
said Tuesday that they believe a wildfire that forced hundreds to
evacuate near Breckenridge, Colorado, was human-caused, but they are
not yet releasing details. Investigators say they are looking for two
hikers that were seen near where the Peak Two fire started last week.
The blaze has been contained, except for a portion that continues to
burn in rugged, steep terrain.

In
rural Arizona, fire officials say three homes were among 10 buildings
that were burned. The wildfire there has led to the evacuation of the
entire town of Dudleyville, about 100 miles (160 kilometers)
southeast of Phoenix.

A
wildfire burning in near Summer Lake in south-central Oregon has
destroyed a hunting cabin and an outbuilding, reports the Associated
Press.

British
Columbia

For
the first time in 15 years, Canada's British Columbia declared a
province-wide state of emergency Saturday as more than 230 wildfires
burned out of control, prompting the evacuation of more than 14,000
residents, reports the Globe and Mail.

According
to CBC News, evacuations were ordered for an entire town, at least
one airport, two hospitals and hundreds of homes after 142 new fires
broke out throughout the province on Friday.

Sparked
by lightning and fueled by gusty winds, the blazes are being reported
"faster than can be written down."

"The
problem is, we're getting a lot of lightning, and a lot of localized
erratic strong winds, but not a lot of precipitation," CBC
meteorologist Johanna Wagstaffe said.

One
of the largest fires is near Ashcroft in the southern part of the
district. The blaze has torched more than 23 square miles, prompting
the Thompson-Nicola Regional District to declare a state of local
emergency.

The
fire destroyed two airport hangars, around 30 homes in a trailer park
in Boston Flats and three or four home on the Ashcroft Indian Band
reserve. Long-term patients at the Ashcroft Hospital were moved as a
precaution.

Fires
surrounded three sides of Cache Creek, just north of Ashcroft,
prompting Mayor John Ranta to sign an evacuation notice for all of
the town's 1,000 or so residents.

Further
north, a series of lightning strikes sparked several wildfires in the
Cariboo Regional District. One prompted the evacuation of the
Williams Lake airport.

"I
saw three of them and then I saw the fires they created as I drove by
them," Mike MacKenzie, who was traveling through the area, told
CBC News. "I've never seen as many fires all start pretty much
in about a two-hour period."

Nearly
4,000 people were forced to evacuate near 100 Mile House as a blaze
threatened homes there.

The
Cariboo Regional District Emergency Operations Centre issued a
warning, saying "fires are reported faster than they can be
written down — all over the Cariboo."